Refrigerator liner construction



Dec. 2, 1946.

B. c. JOHNSON 2,413,233 REFRIGERATOR LINER CONSTRUCTION Filed Sept. 18, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 1- Bremen Cc/amrsom Dec. 2, 1946. B c, JQHNSQN 2,413,233-

REFRIGERATOR LINER CONSTRUCTIOH Filed Sept. 18, 1944 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 21 3o f A v a f by Baa/V4490 C. dam/a0.

Patented Dec. 24, 1946 REFRIGERATOR LINER CONSTRUCTION Bernard C. Johnson, Mundelein, El, assignor to Houdaille-Hershey Corporation, Detroit, Mich, a corporation of Michigan Application September 18, 1944, Serial No. 554,619

ciaims. ii

This invention relates to liner constructions for refrigerators, and specifically deals with sheet metal insert casings for refrigerator cabinets which casings have embossed metal plates bonded theret to provide refrigerant-distributing ducts.

While the invention will be hereinafter specifically described as embodied in liners for domestic refrigerator cabinets, it should be understood that the principles of this invention are not limitedto such usage, being generally applicable to chest constructions, insert casings, and the like.

The usual domestic refrigerator includes an evaporator unit suspended in the interior of the cabinet. The evaporator unit takes up cabinet space and frequently interferes with the arrangement of material in the refrigerator. The evaporator unit defines a sharp-freezing chamber which is always in heat exchange relationship with the rest of the interior of the cabinet. Temperatures materially below freezing, therefore, cannot be maintained in the sharp-freezing chamber without also lowering the temperature of the rest of the cabinet below a desired temperature.

In accordance with this invention, evaporator units suspended in the interior of refrigerator cabinets are eliminated. The invention provides liner casings for insertion in a refrigerator cabinet to define an unobstructed cabinet interior. The casings are stamped and drawn from sheet metal and define top, bottom, side and back walls of refrigerated spaces forming the cold-storage compartments of refrigerator cabinets. The casings are equipped with forwardly projecting edges around the open fronts thereof for receiving sealing strips which cooperate with breaker strips or molded breaker pieces which define entrance mouths to the casing interiors. Embossed metal plates are bonded to outer faces of the casings to cooperate with the casing faces for forming refrigerant-conveying ducts. The refrigerant in these ducts is thus in very intimate heat transfer relation with the spaces enclosed by the casings.

It is, then, an object of this invention to pro vide simple, inexpensive sheet metal casings adapted to serve as liners for cabinets.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a refrigerator cabinet insert casing which has metal bonded thereto for defining refrigerant-conducting paths in intimate heat transfer-relation with the interior of the casing.

A still further object of the invention is to pro- 2 vide an improved sheet metal liner arrangement for domestic refrigerators which has refrigerating ducts formed by brazed-on or welded-0n metal plates.

A further and specific object of the invention is to provide liner casings for refrigerators composed of secured-together dished metal stampings adapted to receive insert stampings therebetween to increase the capacity thereof.

Other and further objects of, the invention will be apparentto those skilled in theart from the following detailed description of the annexed sheets of drawings which, by way of preferred examples only, illustrate two embodiments of the invention.

On the drawings:

Figure 1 is a fragmentary vertical cross-sectional view of a refrigerator cabinet equipped with two liner casings shownpartly in side elevation.

Figure 2 is a broken rear end elevational View of the top liner casing of Figure 1.

Figure 3 is an exploded side elevational view of the parts of the top liner casing of Figure 1, with portions broken away and shown in vertical cross section.

Figure 4 is a plan .vlew of the bottom pan member of the liner casing assembly of Figure 3, taken along the line IVIV of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a somewhat enlarged front end elevational view of the bottom liner casing of Figure 1.

Figure 6 is a somewhat diagrammatic plan view of the parts of the top liner casing of Figure 1 arranged to illustrate the refrigerant flow path.

As shown on the drawings;

As shown in Figure 1, the reference numeral l0 designates generally a refrigerator cabinet having a front wall Illa with an aperture ll therein. A molded breaker. strip frame l2 has a peripheral outturned flange l2a overlying the front wall Ina, together with rectangular inwardly sloping flanges Rb and I20 projecting through the opening II and separated by a wall portion lZd. The rectangular flange 12b defines an opening l3 closed by a door It hingedly mounted on the cabinet I0 while the flange [2c defines an opening i5 closed by a separate door H5 hingedly mounted on the cabinet in beneath the door l4.

A top liner casing I1 is mounted in the cabinet III. This casing I! has top, bottom, side and back walls together with an open front receiving the breaker flange l2b therein so that the in terior of the casing is in full registration with the opening it.

As illustrated, the casing II has a forwardly projecting peripheral edge "a around the open front thereof receiving a rubber sealing strip l8 thereon. This sealing strip i8 is bottomed by an inwardly projecting leg Ila of an inserted angle strip II which is riveted to the casing walls by means of rivet 20. The bottom wall of the casing I'I has a raised bead portion ilb providing by a forwardly projecting peripheral edge 2:

surrounding the flange l2a of the breaker piece l2. A sealing strip 22 is seated on this edge Ma and is bottomed along the top and sides of the casing 2i by an inwardly projecting leg 23a of an angle piece 23 which is riveted to the casing 2| by means of rivets 24. The strip 22. along the bottom of the casing, is bottomed by an upturned bead 2 I b on the bottom wall of the casing across the front end thereof. The flange i2c of the breaker piece is nested in the open front end of the casing 2! in sealing engagement with the sealing strip 22.

The breaker piece I2 does not have contact with either casing I! or 2|, since it is held in insulated spaced relation therefrom by the sealing strips l8 and 22. The openings i3 and I! to the interiors of the casings l1 and 2i are provided by the flanges l2b and I2c of the breaker piece. but, since this breaker piece is in insulated relationship with the casings as explained above, the breaker strip can be made of heat-conducting material-if desired.

The casing I1 is composed of a stamped top pan A, a stamped bottom pan B and an interposed wall piece C. The pans A and B are substantially identical, the only difference in the two being the provision of the upstanding bead i'lb in the bottom pan B. The bead llb forms a raised dam holding liquid in the bottom of the chest. as when the casing is being defrosted.

The top and bottom pans A and B have outturned flanges 25 around the back and side walls thereof adapted to mate with each other to form a small casing such as the casing 2|, or to mate with flanges 28 on the top and bottom of the interposed wall piece C. The mating flanges have gaskets 21 interposed. therebetween. Perforations are provided through the flanges to receive rivets 28 connecting the parts together.

The top wall of the pan A and the bottom wall of the pan 3 are covered with identical embossed metal plates 30, 30. The central portion of the insert piece C is covered with an embossed plate 3|. These plates Ill and II are brazed, welded, or otherwise integrally secured to the walls which they cover.

As shown in Figure 6, the plates 20 are embossed to define ducts 30a while the plate 3! is embossed to define a duct 3la.- The duct 30a of the plate on the top pan A receives refrigerant through an inlet tube 32. This duct 30a discharges through a tube II to the ductila. The duct Sla extends around the sides and back wall of the part C and discharges through a tube to the duct Illa of the plate 30 on the bottom pan B. This tube 34 discharges to a tube Casings of any desired height can be made by interposing high or low metal pieces C between the pans A and B, or by directly connecting the pans A and B together. a

The casings are inexpensively produced by simple stamping and drawing operations, and have integral refrigerant circulating ducts around their outer faces formed by embossed inetal plates bonded to these outer faces. Since the refrigerant in these ducts is only separated from the casing interiors by the single thickness of casing wall, an excellent heat transfer is obtained. No interposed air space, tube metal, casing finish. such as vitreous enamel, or the like insulation is present, and a more efilcient but cheaper casing is obtained. Insulation (not shown) can be provided between the casings and the cabinet in which they are mounted to minimize heat absorption from outside the cabinet. 7 It will, of course, be understood that various details of construction may be varied through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention and it is, therefore, not the purpose to limit the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the scope of the appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. A liner casing for refrigerator cabinets which comprisesv spaced opposed top and bottom metal pans having open front ends and side and back walls with outturned flanges thereon, a U-shaped metal piece with sides and a back wal1 between said top and bottom pans and having outturned flanges mating with the flanges of said pans, means securing said mating flanges together, embossed metal plates bonded to the top and bottom walls of said pans, an embossed metal plate bonded to the sides and back wall of said U-shaped metal piece, said embossed plates defining refrigerant-conveying ducts, a tube connecting one end of the duct on the top pan with one end of the duct on the U-shaped piece, a

second tube connecting the other end of said duct on the U-shaped piece with one end of the duct on the bottom wall of the bottom pan, said pans and U-shaped piece cooperating to define a forwardly projecting front edge around the open front of the casing, said bottom wall of the bottom pan having an upturned bead adjacent said forwardly projecting edge. and an uncle strip inside of the casing extending along the side walls and top thereof and having an inwardly projecting leg adjacent the forwardly projecting edge cooperating with said bead to form an inside abutment wall around the inlet mouth of the casing.

2. A liner assembly for a refrigerator cabinet comprising stamped top and bottom metal pans each having side and back walls with outturned flanges therearound, means'securing said outturned flanges together to define an open front chamber, said pans having embossed metal plates bonded on the top and bottom walls thereof and cooperating therewith to define refriserant cir culating ducts, a tube connecting said ducts, said pans having forwardly projecting front edges around the open fronts thereof, the bottom wall of said bottom pan having an upstanding bead embossed therein forming an upstanding fiat abutment wall in inwardly spaced relation from said forwardly projecting front edges and fac-' ing saidedges, and a metal angle strip exten'ding along the sides and toner said liner having an inwardly projecting leg in the liner in spaced relation inwardly from the forwardly projecting front edge cooperating with said abutment wall of said bead to define a continuous abutment wall around the inlet mouth of the liner.

3. A refrigerator comprising a cabinet having a front wall with an opening therein, a breaker 4. A casing comprising a top pan having a depending skirt around three sides thereof, a bottom pan having an'upstanding skirt around three sides thereof, an insert piece having three sides connecting said skirts together with an open front cooperating with the open ends of the skirts to define an inlet mouth to an enclosed chamber, and means on said insert piece cooperating therewith to define refrigerant-circulating ducts.

5. A liner assembly for a refrigerator cabinet comprising top and bottom pans each having side and back walls, means connecting said pans together to define an open front chamber, said pans having forwardly projecing front edges around the open fronts thereof, the bottom wall of said bottom pan having an upstanding bead portion embossed therein forming an upstanding abutment wall in inwardly spaced relation from said forwardly projecting front edges and facing said edges, and an angle strip in said pan extending along the sides and top of said liner and having an inwardly projecting leg in the liner in spaced relation inwardly from the forwardly projecting from edges and cooperatin with said abutment wall of said head to define a continuous wall around the inlet mouthof the liner.

BERNARD C. JOHNSON. 

